Earlier in the month, there was a leak that allegedly pointed to a new entry in the Counter-Strike franchise, but Valve was in no mood to comment. While fans got predictably excited, the radio silence meant that nothing was set in stone. However, an official announcement has finally been made, and that’s right, Counter-Strike 2 is a real thing, and it will be arriving pretty soon.
While there was no exact release date, Valve has shared that Counter-Strike 2 will have a release window of Summer 2023, and will be running on the Source Engine 2.
For players who already own Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, or CS:GO, Counter-Strike 2 will come as a free upgrade, which is certainly a nice touch. In fact, eager beavers can have a go with limited testing going on right now, and you can join by registering with Valve. All of your items from the base game will also be carried over.
As the official website describes, Counter-Strike 2 is set to be “the largest technical leap forward in Counter-Strike’s history, ensuring new features and updates for years to come.” This includes “upgraded and overhauled maps,” “game-changing” smoke grenades, tick-rate-independent gameplay, and redesigned visual effects and audio.
All of the maps in Counter-Strike 2 “have been fully rebuilt from the ground up, leveraging all of the new Source 2 tools and rendering features.” Perhaps more importantly, “regardless of tick rate, your moving and shooting will be equally responsive and your grenades will always land the same way.”
With the first-person genre already flooded with plenty of competition, it remains to be seen just how well Counter-Strike 2 will do. With Valve’s backing and innovation, the chances are it will do just fine. Here’s hoping for yet another seminal shooter coming your way later in the summer.
Jake is a full-time trophy hunter and achievement gatherer on consoles, and part-time Steam Sale victim. He has a thing for Batman and awesome statues, and running out of space for both. Send help.
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